Intern gang raped in city mill

Mumbai is fast catching up with Delhi to top the shame table as far as rape statistics are concerned. In yet another shameful episode, a 22-year-old intern working in city magazine ‘Times Out’ was allegedly gang raped on the premises of a defunct textile mill in Lower Parel. The girl has been hospitalized and an official word was awaited on her medical condition. FPJ sources said she was in a state of shock and admitted in the ICU.

The girl had gone to Shakti Mill, N M Joshi Road, for a photo shoot at around 6.30 pm with a male companion.

The girl was gang raped by four to five people in a secluded spot on the dilapidated mill premises, located right behind the Famous Studio. Her male companion was tied up during the ordeal and later took the girl to Jaslok Hospital.

Journalists at the Press Club, including office-bearer Gurbir Singh, immediately rushed to the N M Joshi police station to express concern of the journalist fraternity.

However, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone III, Vinayak Deshmukh, and Additional Commissioner of Police (Central) Pravin Salunke were tightlipped and said that they would speak only after they receive a statement from the hospital. The statement was never made and the two police officials fled from the spot to the consternation of the journalists. The buzz was that now the police commissioner would make the official statement.

Other top police officials were at the hospital. Jaideep Vig, the editor of ‘Time Out’ magazine, confirmed that the girl is from their in-house photography department. But it could not be

ascertained whether she was on an assignment or not. No arrests had been made till midnight but four youngsters had been rounded up and brought to N M Joshi Road police station for interrogation. Recent statistics compiled by Praja Foundation, a non-partisan citybased organisation, show a 15 per cent rise in the number of rape cases in Mumbai. The molestation cases have risen by 14%.